HOUSTON, TX (May 16, 2013) – Three Houston organizations will come together June 19 to commemorate Juneteenth, the oldest known celebration marking the ending of slavery in the United States.

Almost 148 years ago, Union soldiers led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger marched into Galveston and announced the end of the civil war, finally enabling the Emancipation Proclamation to take effect and the beginning of freedom for those enslaved. The day became forever known as Juneteenth, having happened on June 19, 1865.

Holocaust Museum Houston (HMH), the Houston Museum of African American Culture (HMAAC) and The Rutherford B.H. Yates Museum will unite cultures and the community that day this June as they join for “The Walk to Freedom: Feeling the Emotions of Our Forbears” to commemorate those memorable events.

The evening will begin at 6:30 p.m. at HMAAC, 4807 Caroline St., with light refreshments and an historical overview of the history of Juneteenth. At 7 p.m., participants will take a reflective walk four blocks down Caroline Street to Holocaust Museum Houston to remember those who walked off plantations 148 years ago to begin their lives as freed individuals. The WALIPP-TSU Preparatory Academy will accompany walkers by playing and singing inspiring hymns of freedom. The evening will conclude at HMH with a lecture by Dr. Quintard Taylor, the Scott and Dorothy Bullitt professor of American history at the University of Washington. Taylor will discuss his perspective on understanding Texas through the prism of African American history. In addition to the lecture, vocalist Charles Clemons will do a reading of the proclamation, and The Praise Team from the Historic New Zion Temple Church will perform.

While at HMH, guests will have an opportunity to view the Museum’s two new changing exhibits, “Uprooted,” which highlights the experiences of two Jewish families featuring materials from the Museum’s own permanent collection, and “Through Soviet Jewish Eyes,” which features 58 photographs revealing the war as presented through the lens of the most important Soviet photojournalists.

Admission is free, but seating is limited and advance registration is requested. Visit https://www.hmh.org/RegisterEvent.aspx to RSVP online.

Holocaust Museum Houston is dedicated to educating people about the Holocaust, remembering the 6 million Jews and other innocent victims and honoring the survivors' legacy. Using the lessons of the Holocaust and other genocides, the Museum teaches the dangers of hatred, prejudice and apathy.

Holocaust Museum Houston’s Morgan Family Center is free and open to the public and is located in Houston’s Museum District at 5401 Caroline St., Houston, TX 77004. For more information about the Museum, call 713-942-8000 or visit www.hmh.org.

Our Public Relations team is eager to assist you in coverage of activities at Holocaust Museum Houston.

All requests for interviews or on-site photography or videography by members of the media must be coordinated in advance through our Public Relations office by calling 713-942-8000, ext. 103 or e-mailing news@hmh.org.

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Holocaust Museum Houston is an accredited member of the American Alliance of Museums.